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FEMA released the Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) for the Fiscal Year 2024 Emergency Operations Center (EOC) Grant Program. The program provides more than $103 million to eligible for state and local governments, as well as Tribal Nations, for equipping, upgrading or constructing emergency operations center projects determined by Congress.
The EOC Grant Program improves emergency management and preparedness capabilities by supporting flexible, sustainable, secure, strategically located and fully interoperable emergency operation centers with a focus on addressing identified deficiencies and needs. Fully capable emergency operations facilities at the state, local and Tribal Nation levels are an essential element of a comprehensive national emergency management system and are necessary to ensure continuity of operations and government in major disasters or emergencies caused by all types of hazards.
Only State Administrative Agencies (on behalf of state and local units of government) and Federally Recognized Tribes with projects identified in Appendix A of the funding notice are eligible to apply. The EOC Grant Program is congressionally directed spending with Congress determining the funded projects.
The application period will remain open until 5 p.m. ET on June 7. Application submissions must be made through FEMA Grants Outcomes (GO). The NOFO is available on Grants.gov (Assistance Listings Number 97.052) and www.fema.gov/grants.
Next week, FEMA will partner with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) for the annual Hurricane Awareness Tour along the East Coast to encourage residents to start preparing for the upcoming hurricane season.
At each stop, the media, students and the emergency management community are invited to meet FEMA and NOAA hurricane experts, scientists and crew members. Attendees will also have the unique opportunity to tour the aircrafts that help forecasters keep us safe – NOAA’s WP-3D and the U.S. Air Force Reserve WC-130J “Hurricane Hunter.”
Tour dates and locations are below:
- May 6 - Portland, ME
- May 7 - Albany, NY
- May 8 - Norfolk, VA
- May 9 - Charleston, SC
- May 10 - Sanford, FL
For more information, visit NOAA’s Hurricane Hunter page.
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FEMA Region 6 will host a hiring event from 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. CT on Tuesday, May 21. Ideal candidates must be able to represent FEMA’s core values of compassion, fairness, integrity and respect. Hiring officials will be available onsite to address questions and conduct interviews on the spot.
The four locations will be:
- Russell Newman Building-Suite 5
- Main Entrance with Blue Awning
- 600 N. Loop 288, Denton, Texas 76209
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Contact: robert.jones8@fema.dhs.gov
Positions available:
- Environmental protection specialist.
- Emergency management specialist.
- Logistics management specialist.
- Grants management specialist.
- Civil engineer.
- Contract specialist.
For more information, visit Region 6 | FEMA.gov for specific job announcements. Visit Careers at FEMA | FEMA.gov to learn more about working with the agency. For questions about the hiring event, email the contact for the specific location.
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FEMA will host a webinar on how to develop after-action reports (AARs) for real-world incidents, from 2-3 p.m. ET on Wednesday, May 1. This webinar will emphasize approaches for completing incident after-action reviews outlined in FEMA’s National Continuous Improvement Guidance.
AARs remain the most common continuous improvement product in emergency management. During this webinar, FEMA will equip participants with a systematic after-action approach to identify and build on strengths and potential best practices to address areas for improvement. The webinar will also review resources focused on developing AARs that are available on the FEMA Preparedness Toolkit.
The webinar is designed for Tribal Nations and state, local, and territorial partners, non-governmental organizations, the private sector and other entities involved in emergency management functions engaged in continuous improvement efforts.
To attend the webinar, register in advance by visiting the event page on FEMA.gov and click the "Register" button. If an issue arises while registering or logging in, email FEMA-CITAP@fema.dhs.gov.
FEMA will host two 1-hour webinars on the Resource Inventory System from 1 - 2 p.m. ET on May 15 and May 21. Both webinars will cover the basic capabilities and functions of the system and explore new functions recently added to the tool.
Resource management is the cornerstone of preparing for, and responding to, incidents that require mutual aid among agencies and jurisdictions. The Resource Inventory System (RIS) is a centralized, secure and cloud-hosted resource inventory solution for use by the community to build and strengthen resource management preparedness. RIS enables organizations and users to identify and inventory their resources in ways that are consistent with National Incident Management System (NIMS) resource types and National Qualification System (NQS) positions.
The webinars will explain the role of the system in the resource management process. Participants will gain insights into updates, including the ability for an organization to choose when and how to implement updates or new releases to National Resource Types. The webinar will also explain individual ownership of an organization’s local definitions and qualifications and the ability for organization administrators to easily see and manage their users. Participants will be able to ask questions at the end of the presentation.
To learn more about resource management, visit Resource Management - NIMS Toolkit - Preparedness Toolkit (fema.gov).
On March 18, the National Flood Insurance Program’s 2024 Riverine Flooding campaign launched to raise awareness of the unique risks faced by property owners and renters who live and work near rivers.
The campaign focuses on counties in FEMA regions 1-8 along major waterways, including the Mississippi, Hudson, Rio Grande, Susquehanna, Ohio and Red rivers. Targeted counties were identified using market segmentation and National Risk Index data.
FEMA’s 2023 disaster preparedness survey found that those at risk for riverine flooding had a disproportionately low level of awareness of their flood risk compared to those at risk for other types of flooding. According to the survey, only 43% of participants living in areas at higher risk for riverine flooding were aware of their risk.
By comparison, 60% of respondents at risk for coastal flooding and 93% of respondents at risk for hurricane flooding were aware of their risk. The riverine campaign aims to bridge the gap between risk and awareness and encourages non-policyholders to get a flood insurance quote from an agent.
The creative concept for the campaign draws on movie imagery and compares the unexpected twists and turns of a river to plot twists in movies. The graphics and messaging tap into the impacts that flooding can cause in people’s lives and presents flood insurance as the solution.
Paid media tactics for the campaign include radio, digital, paid search and social media ads allowing the NFIP to reach a broad audience and share important information with both English- and Spanish-speaking communities. The campaign also focuses on insurance agent engagement with targeted emails to help them better understand this unique risk and support their clients with NFIP resources.
Learn more about the risk of river flooding at floodsmart.gov/rivers. This page is also available in Spanish at floodsmart.gov/rios.
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On April 23, FEMA’s Individual and Community Preparedness Division (ICPD) hosted a 4-H Youth Perspective Briefing as a part of the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) National 4-H Conference.
FEMA employees provided a challenge question for the delegates: How can FEMA engage youth in its efforts to help communities prepare for climate-related disasters?
A team of 18 youth delegates - aged 15-19 - presented solutions to FEMA staff that included improving FEMA’s social media presence to a younger audience, partnering directly with local community organizations and improving national outreach incentives. FEMA staff provided feedback to empower the delegates to continue to work to make the world a better place.
4-H is a youth outreach program of the USDA that is conducted at the state and local level and reaches more than 6 million young people in rural, urban and suburban communities across the nation.
Once a year the USDA conducts the National 4-H Conference to allow their youth delegates to share their voice with federal officials in Washington, D.C., where agencies are asked to present a challenge question for a team of youth to answer from their perspective. This conference highlights youth voices, encourages their interest in federal government and develops the U.S. workforce.
To learn more about how FEMA prepares youth before, during and after disasters, visit Youth and Emergency Planning | FEMA.gov.
 4-H Youth Delegates presented to FEMA staff to provide solutions that can help communities prepare for climate-related disasters at FEMA headquarters on April 23 in Washington, D.C.
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From April 24-26, FEMA and USAID sponsored an urban search and rescue full-scale exercise in Lorton, Virginia.
Most recently, the USA-TF1 Urban Search and Rescue Team deployed as a USAID Bureau of Humanitarian Assistance asset to bolster search and rescue operations following the 2023 earthquakes in Turkey.
For this exercise, USAID sponsored the Virginia Task Force One (VA-TF1) /United States One (USA-1) participation simulating an international response and FEMA sponsored National Urban Search & Rescue (US&R) Response System task forces from Maryland (MD-TF1) and Pennsylvania (PA-TF1) that operated as local task forces.
Visit Urban Search & Rescue | FEMA.gov to learn more about the agency's search and rescue efforts.
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Join FEMA for the April Business and Industry Call
FEMA's Office of Business, Industry and Infrastructure Integration is hosting its next Business and Industry Call from 3 to 4 p.m. ET on Tuesday, April 30. The meeting will showcase resilience tools for business organizations and communities to use when preparing for disaster emergencies and protecting assets throughout the year. For organizations interested in joining the NBEOC, please visit fema.gov/NBEOC.
To register for the Business and Industry Call from 3 to 4 p.m. ET on April 30, visit Webinar Registration - Zoom (zoomgov.com).
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New Guidance on Climate Adaption Planning for Emergency Managers
FEMA released the “Climate Adaptation Planning: Guidance for Emergency Managers.” The agency will host a series of 60-minute webinar sessions to provide an overview of the guide and associated resources. The webinars will also provide information on the Emergency Management Institute’s “Climate Adaptation and Hazard Mitigation Certificate Program.”
Advance registration is required and seats are offered on a first-come, first-served basis. To register, click on your preferred session below:
- Webinar 1: 1 - 2 p.m. ET on Thursday, May 2.
- Webinar 2: 4 - 5 p.m. ET on Wednesday, May 15.
- Webinar 3: 2 - 3 p.m. ET on Tuesday, May 21.
If you require assistive accommodations to participate in these sessions, please email us at NPD-Planning@fema.dhs.gov.
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FEMA Seeks National Resilience Guidance Input
FEMA is seeking feedback on the draft National Resilience Guidance. National resilience is a complex topic and building it requires a whole community effort. This guidance will help everyone understand and fulfil their critical roles related to increasing national resilience. FEMA will host a series of four, 60-minute webinar sessions in May to provide an overview of the National Resilience Guidance and gather feedback from whole community partners.
Advance registration is required and seats are offered on a first-come, first-served basis. To register, click on your preferred session below. If you require assistive accommodations to participate in these sessions, please email us at national-resilience@fema.dhs.gov.
- Webinar 1: 1 - 2 p.m. ET on Tuesday, May 7.
- Webinar 2: 3 - 4 p.m. ET on Thursday, May 9.
- Webinar 3: 3 - 4 p.m. ET on Tuesday, May 14.
- Webinar 4: 1 - 2 p.m. ET on Wednesday, May 15.
In addition, a line-numbered version of the draft guide is available to allow individuals to provide comments on specific areas within the document. This national engagement period will conclude on May 23. To review the document and learn more about the webinar sessions, visit National Resilience Guidance | FEMA.gov.
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FEMA Opens 2024 National Advisory Council Member Applications for New Members
FEMA Administrator Deanne Criswell announced that the agency is taking new applications for qualified individuals to lend their expertise and serve on FEMA’s National Advisory Council (NAC), a geographically diverse and substantive cross-section of 40 members who advise the FEMA administrator on all aspects of emergency management.
If you are interested in applying to serve on FEMA’s National Advisory Council, please follow the instructions listed in the Federal Register Notice and submit your application package no later than 11:59 p.m. ET on May 12. Per the Federal Advisory Committee Act, federal employees are ineligible to apply.
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Public Comment Period Open for Federal Flood Standard Website and Support Tool
Flooding is the most common and costly natural hazard in the United States. According to NOAA’s Billion-Dollar Weather and Climate Disasters from 1980-2023, flood related losses have cost the nation an average $4.3 billion per year.
The Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) published a Notice of Availability for public comment on two draft resources. The public can review a beta version of the Federal Flood Standard Support website and the Federal Flood Standard Support Tool. These digital resources can assist federal agencies and applicants or recipients of federal financial assistance in the implementation of the Federal Flood Risk Management Standard. The deadline to submit comments is May 28.
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Biden-Harris Administration Announces $150 Million to Help Underserved Communities Fund Resilience Projects
FEMA announced the second funding opportunity for the Safeguarding Tomorrow Revolving Loan Fund grant program to make communities safer from natural hazards. Funded by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, this program provides capitalization grants to eligible applicants nationwide. Applicants then offer low-interest loans directly to local communities to reduce their vulnerability to disasters, promote equity, foster greater community resilience and reduce disaster impacts.
The Safeguarding Tomorrow funding notice is available on Grants.gov. Eligible entities must apply for funding using the Non-Disaster Grants Management System on the FEMA website. Applications must be received by 3 p.m. ET. by Thursday, May 30.
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Application Period Open for Repetitive Flood Mitigation Funding
An additional $300 million in Swift Current funding is available to help property owners across the nation become more resilient to flooding. This funding opportunity is the second time that FEMA is using assets from President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law for Swift Current, part of the Flood Mitigation Assistance program. Buildings must be insured through the National Flood Insurance Program to be eligible.
FEMA will work with states and Tribal Nations to explore their participation during this cycle. Potential applicants who have questions may contact their FEMA regional office through the FEMA website, while interested subapplicants should contact their state or territory hazard mitigation officer through the FEMA website. All eligible applicants must submit their FY 2023 Swift Current grant applications to FEMA via the Mitigation eGrants webpage. Upon Swift Current activation, FEMA will provide the application deadline to the applicant.
The application period opened on Nov. 15, 2023, and the last eligible disaster declaration date is May 31, 2024. Full details are available on Grants.gov.
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National Hurricane Program Hosts HURREVAC Webinar Series for Emergency Managers
The National Hurricane Program is a partnership between FEMA, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the NOAA National Hurricane Center. From June 10 – 14, FEMA's National Hurricane Program will host a five-day HURREVAC training for emergency managers. Each session will start at 2 p.m. ET and run 60–90 minutes.
HURREVAC is a free web-based decision-support tool that assists emergency managers by providing information and tools to inform hurricane response decisions in advance of a threatening storm. Interested emergency managers can register now for this annual HURREVAC webinar series.
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Funding Opportunities for the FEMA National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program
On May 1, FEMA will post funding notices for two National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program grants for more than $3 million. The application period opens on May 1, and the funding notices will be on Grants.gov. Eligible applicants must apply for funding through the FEMA Grants Outcomes webpage, the agency’s grants management system. Submit applications in FEMA Grants Outcome Portal no later than 5 p.m. ET on Friday, June 14. Applications received by FEMA after this deadline will not be considered for funding.
FEMA is holding webinars to answer questions, discuss funding opportunities and more. Register for the webinars on the grants workshop webpage. The first webinar will be from 2:30 to 4 p.m. ET on Thursday, May 2. The second webinar is from 2:30 to 4 p.m. ET on Tuesday, May 14.
Interested applicants should contact their earthquake program manager for more information. For more information, visit Earthquake Risk | FEMA.gov.
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